As 2020 comes to a close, I realize that for many, it isn’t ending nearly fast enough.
Maybe this year has tested your limits and patience. Perhaps you’ve lost someone close to you or fear for you or your loved one’s health or the world at large. Perhaps all this extra time has you reevaluating your relationship or life choices. Maybe you’re angry at how things have been handled or not handled.
Maybe you’re tired of sitting with the heavy emotions and the hard choices this year has brought. Or maybe you’re feeling guilty that you’re not doing enough, you haven’t suffered as much as others or you’re feeling like a failure for not keeping all the plates simultaneously spinning.
In some ways, 2020 gave us all a chance to learn, grow and adjust.
Even when it was hard.
For many people, 2020 was about multiple changes and stressful situations nearly back-to-back-to-back including COVID, economic strain, racial unrest, political division, grief and loss and environmental disasters such as wildfires and hurricanes.
With multiple stressors affecting the country or world, it’s common to feel that you can’t make or have a positive effect on any of them. It makes sense that you feel you have no control over the situation. This creates increased anxiety, hopelessness and helplessness.
We are all navigating our way through a vastly different world this year. We’re going through a collective grief and collective trauma right now. We’ve never been here before. We can’t possibly know how to seamlessly navigate our way though. It’s been heavy. It’s been scary. It’s been lonely. It’s been sad. It’s been challenging and it’s been confusing.
I want you to know, it’s ok not to have it all together. And it’s ok not to have all the answers right now. And it’s ok if you can’t see the light at the end of the tunnel.
My wish for you is to feel however you need to feel about 2020, raw and unfiltered. If you ignore your feelings, (2020 feelings included) they don’t go away; they go underground. When they’re buried, they don’t stay buried forever. They often come back in even more confusing, less recognizable ways (such as depression, anxiety, avoidance, irritability, explosiveness, chronic fatigue, physical ailments, etc.)
Thank you for allowing me a space in your world this year. I appreciate your friendships, connections and support during this year of ups and downs.
I wish you a happy, healthy, safe and healing 2021.
Here’s to our resiliency,
Carrie
